EXHIBITION 


OF 

BRONZES  AND  PAINTINGS 

BY 

ANTOINE  LOUIS  BARYE 


MARCH  11  TO  MARCH  21 

INCLUSIVE 


NEW  YORK 
THE  GROLIER  CLUB 
1909 


EXHIBITION 


OF 

BRONZES  AND  PAINTINGS 

BY 

ANTOINE  LOUIS  BARYE 


MARCH  11  TO  MARCH  27 
INCLUSIVE 


NEW  YORK 
THE  GROLIER  CLUB 
1909 


ANTOINE  LOUIS  BARYE 


The  man  of  genius  whose  work  is  repre- 
sented in  this  exhibition  enjoyed  an  in- 
spiration rare  in  any  epoch  but  never, 
from  the  earliest  times,  without  its  zealous 
followers.  In  nearly  every  great  school 
there  have  been  artists  to  whom  the  appeal 
of  the  animal  as  a subject  for  treatment 
has  been  as  urgent  as  the  appeal  of  the 
human  figure  has  been  to  the  majority  of 
their  fellows.  One  of  the  earliest  master- 
pieces in  the  history  of  sculpture  is  that 
relief,  of  Assyrian  origin,  now  in  the 
British  Museum,  which  portrays  a wounded 
lioness  on  the  verge  of  its  last  agony.  The 
horse  was  modeled  with  peculiar  knowledge 
and  enthusiasm  by  the  Greeks  and  the 
taste,  if  not  the  power,  developed  in  their 
world,  wras  revived  in  that  of  the  Romany 
In  more  modern  periods  the  same  sym- 
pathetic feeling  for  the  noblest  of  quad- 
rupeds is  observed,  and,  indeed,  the  animal, 
wild  or  domestic,  reappears  again  and 
3 


INTRODUCTION 


again  in  the  works  of  the  masters.  The 
insatiable  curiosity  of  Leonardo  wreaks  it- 
self on  strange  beasts;  Rembrandt,  in  one 
of  the  most  interesting  of  his  drawings, 
gives  you  the  portrait  of  an  elephant;  the 
robust  style  of  Rubens  is  flung  magnifi- 
cently over  the  hurly-burly  of  form  in- 
volved in  a lion  hunt,  and  so,  through 
countless  phases,  an  influence  persists  down 
to  our  own  day.  Antoine  Louis  Barye  is 
an  honorable  figure  in  a long  line  of  artists 
whose  gifts  have  been  dedicated  to  the 
interpretation  of  the  carnivora  and  those 
four-footed  creatures  which  have  been 
tamed  by  man. 

Born  in  Paris  in  1795,  he  came  to  man- 
hood at  a time  and  amid  circumstances  ex- 
ceptionally favorable  to  the  growth  of  his 
artistic  predilections.  In  the  clash  of  the 
Napoleonic  wars  men’s  minds  turned  natu- 
rally enough  to  themes  of  wild  violence. 
The  typical  academician  of  that  period 
pursued,  it  is  true,  the  even  tenor  of  his 
way,  and,  in  fact,  under  the  empire,  found 
his  path  made  doubly  smooth.  But  there 
were  electric  forces  in  the  air  and  these 
• 4 


INTRODUCTION 


were  destined,  sooner  or  later,  to  promote 
rebellion  against  pseudo-classicism  and  the 
rule  of  thumb  generally.  The  possessor  of 
a literary  or  artistic  temperament  was 
stirred  by  the  emotions  of  the  man  of  ac- 
tion, and  these  were  bound  to  find  an  out- 
let. Thus  germinated  the  passion  for  a 
new  ideal  of  beauty  and  for  individual  ex- 
pression which  culminated  in  the  formation 
of  the  romantic  school.  The  painters  of 
1830  established  their  tradition,  con- 
sciously or  unconsciously,  on  a basis  not 
simply  of  artistic  but  of  political  and 
social  feeling.  The  life-blood  of  France 
was  re-invigorated;  men  used  their  limbs 
with  a new  energy.  The  scales  fell  from 
their  eyes,  and  if  they  saw  visions  and 
dreamed  dreams  they  also  looked  out  upon 
the  visible  world  with  a keener  zest  and  a 
wider  range  of  sympathies.  They  obeyed, 
moreover,  the  dictates  of  their  own  char- 
acters. Gericault  exercised  the  faculties 
of  a realist  with  a dramatic  turn  of  mind. 
Delacroix,  avid  of  the  thing  that  he  could 
see  and  touch,  was  nevertheless  impelled  to 
bathe  it  in  the  glamour  of  romance.  De- 
5 


INTRODUCTION 


camps,  when  he  turned  from  landscape, 
from  Oriental  caravans,  from  Italian  peas- 
ants, and  the  like,  would  paint  monkeys  as 
human  beings,  giving  free  play  to  the  vein 
of  satire  in  his  nature.  What  of  Barye, 
who  was  of  their  generation  and  in  har- 
mony with  their  broad  spirit?  He  gave 
himself  first  and  last  to  the  expression  of 
the  truth,  presenting  it  in  his  art  without 
the  intervention  of  any  sentiment,  ro- 
mantic or  otherwise. 

The  story  of  his  career  is  one  of  unre- 
mitting application  to  the  lessons  of  na- 
ture. His  father  was  a silversmith,  and  in 
his  youth  he  served  the  apprenticeship  of  a 
craftsman.  In  the  workshop  of  Fourier  he 
learned  how  to  work  in  the  precious  metals, 
and  it  may  be  noted  in  passing  that  down 
to  the  day  of  his  death  he  preserved  the 
aptitudes  of  the  goldsmith.  Some  of  his 
statuettes  might  have  easily  been  produced 
by  a disciple  of  Cellini.  But  Barye  soon 
craved  a wider  field  of  activity  and  found 
the  key  to  it  in  that  impulse  which  drove 
him  to  the  Jardin  des  Plantes.  Frequent- 
ing the  collection  of  wild  animals  there, 
6 


INTRODUCTION 


absorbed  in  contemplation  of  their  traits, 
he  proceeded  to  observe  them  both  as  an 
artist  and  as  a naturalist.  To  Delacroix’s 
instinct  for  the  sensuous  beauty  of  the 
leopard  or  the  tiger  he  joined  a scientist’s 
inquisitiveness  as  to  the  springs  of  action 
in  those  lithe,  gleaming  bodies.  He  studied 
the  movement  of  the  muscles  under  the 
rippling  skin,  he  noted  every  nuance  of 
expression  ebout  the  mouths  and  eyes  of 
his  great  cats.  He  watched  them  feeding, 
or  moving  with  their  ceaseless  restlessness 
up  and  down  the  cage,  or  lying  in  ineffably 
graceful  repose.  He  marked  the  reference 
of  action  to  emotion,  so  synthesizing  his 
observations  that  when  he  came  to  paint 
one  of  his  water-colors  or  to  model  one  of 
his  bronzes  he  made  his  lion  or  panther, 
his  tiger  or  crocodile,  an  astounding  unit 
of  form  and  feeling.  The  tread  of  one  of 
his  tigers  is  full  of  power  and  menace.  The 
whole  body  seems  to  quiver.  No  beast  of 
his  is  immobile,  unless,  perchance,  he  wishes 
it  to  be  so;  and  even  then  one  is  always 
aware,  as  in  the  presence  of  the  living  ani- 
mal, of  an  extraordinary  latent  elasticity. 

7 


INTRODUCTION 


Not  the  Assyrian  relief  already  mentioned, 
not  any  triumph  of  Greek  plastic  art,  is 
more  vitalized  than  is  one  of  these  master- 
pieces of  Barye.  His  works  have  in  them 
a spark  of  that  life  which  makes  a thrilling 
mystery  of  the  depths  of  the  jungle.  Like 
Blake,  with  his  “Tiger ! Tiger ! burning 
bright,”  this  artist  flashes  upon  the  imagi- 
nation an  authentic  image  of  terror  and 
beauty. 

He  could  do  this,  in  the  first  place,  be- 
cause he  knew  his  subjects  so  well,  because 
he  had  got,  so  to  say,  under  their  skins. 
The  value  of  the  truth  in  his  work  is  trans- 
cendent. But  if  his  pictures  and  sculp- 
tures are  to  be  treasured  it  is  also  because 
they  give  expression  to  a great  artistic 
personality,  to  a man  with  the  secret  of 
style.  He  is  not  content  to  make  a realistic 
portrait  of  one  of  his  models.  He  must 
caress  that  portrait  with  an  individualizing 
touch,  he  must  determine  its  outlines  and 
its  effect  in  the  mass  so  that  it  will  conform 
to  his  sense  of  design.  It  is  interesting  to 
note,  too,  that  you  may  turn  a bronze  of 
Barye’s  about,  looking  at  it  from  every 
8 


INTRODUCTION 


point  of  view,  and  always  it  is  interesting, 
as  the  animal  itself  would  be,  moving  hither 
and  yon.  There  is  a wonderful  boldness, 
there  is  a kind  of  grand  simplicity,  in  the 
art  of  Barye ; but  he  is  a subtle  master,  one 
whose  work,  no  matter  how  spontaneous  it 
may  seem  to  be,  leaves  invariably  an  im- 
pression of  artistic  construction,  of  deli- 
cately wrought  composition. 

It  took  his  countrymen  some  time  to  real- 
ize what  he  was  driving  at  and  to  do  him  honor. 
In  the  competitions  which  he  entered  at  the 
Ecole  des  Beaux  Arts  as  a young  man  the 
prize  would  again  and  again  be  awarded  to 
some  rival  now  unknown  to  fame.  He  was 
sorely  tried  and  must  at  times  have  reached 
the  brink  of  despair.  He  was,  however,  no 
less  tenacious  than  modest,  and  after  years 
of  patient  waiting  he  had  his  reward.  Dis- 
cerning patrons  entered  his  life,  some  of 
them,  like  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  well  quali- 
fied to  make  his  talent  known,  and  little  by 
little  public  appreciation  drew  him  from 
the  obscurity  in  which  academic  authorities 
would  have  been  satisfied  to  leave  him. 
Monumental  bronzes  of  his  were  erected  in 
9 


INTRODUCTION 


Paris  and  elsewhere,  his  works  executed  on 
a small  scale  figured  in  exhibitions  and  were 
presently  acquired  with  enthusiasm  by  pri- 
vate collectors.  When  he  died,  in  1875,  he 
died  in  the  knowledge  that  his  rank  as  a 
great  artist  had  been  fixed,  and  ever  since 
his  renown  has  increased.  It  is  good  to 
know  that  American  connoisseurs  were 
quick  to  perceive  his  merit  and  that  his  art 
is  finely  represented  in  this  country. 


10 


CATALOGUE  OF 


BRONZES  AND  PAINTINGS 


CATALOGUE 


BRONZES 

1 Arab  killing  lion 

2 Tatar  warrior.  (Arabesque  base) 

184- 

3 Gaston  de  Foix.  1838 

4 Charles  VII  (The  Victorious) 

(Proof  No.  10.)  1838 

5 Napoleon.  (Designed  for  the  City 

of  Grenoble.)  Modern 

6 Theseus  fighting  Centaur.  1850 

7 Theseus  fighting  the  Minotaur. 

(Proof  No.  5.)  1838 

8 “Amazon.”  (In  costume  of  1830) 

184- 

9 Monkey  mounted  on  gnu.  (Proof 

No.  2.)  1842 


13 


BRONZES 


10  Seated  lion.  (Tuileries.)  1836 

11  Seated  lion.  (No.  2.)  1841 

12  Seated  lion.  (Small;  new  model) 

13  Seated  lion.  (Small) 

14  Lion  and  serpent.  (Tuileries) 

1832-33 

15  Lion  and  serpent.  (Uplifted  paw) 

1832-33 

16  Lion  devouring  hind.  1837 

17  Tiger  devouring  gazelle.  1834 

18  Lion  walking.  1835-36 

19  Tiger  walking.  1835-36 

20  Lion  walking.  (Terra  cotta;  new 

model) 

21  Two  young  lions.  1835 

22  Lioness  standing.  (New  model) 

23  Senegal  lioness 

24  Algerian  lioness 

25  Sleeping  jaguar 

14 


BY  ANTOINE  LOUIS  BARYE 

26  Jaguar  standing.  (Reduction) 

1840 

27  Jaguar  walking.  (Reduction) 

1840 

28  Jaguar  devouring  agouti.  1847 

29  J aguar  devouring  crocodile. 

1850-55 

30  Panther  catching  stag 

31  Tiger  devouring  gavial.  (Reduc- 

tion.) 1831 

32  Panther  reclining 

33  Tunisian  panther.  1840 

34  Indian  panther.  1840 

35  Reclining  panther  holding  stag.  1839 

36  Panther  pouncing  on  civet-cat 

37  Tiger  overpowering  stag.  (Reduc- 

tion of  the  group  in  stone  at  Lyons, 
France.)  1839 

38  Elephant  crushing  tiger.  1837 

15 


BRONZES 


39  Senegal  elephant.  (Aluminum) 

Modern 

40  Senegal  elephant.  (Bronze) 

41  Cochin  China  elephant.  Modern 

42  African  elephant 

43  Asian  elephant.  1833 

44  Algerian  dromedary 

45  Algerian  dromedary.  (Small) 

46  Group  of  bears.  1833 

47  Bear  in  tree  eating  owl 

48  Seated  bear.  1834 

49  Bear  standing.  1831 

50  Wolf  holding  stag  by  throat 

51  Stag,  hind,  and  faun 

52  Buck,  doe,  and  two  fauns 

53  Listening  stag.  (Proof  No.  36) 

1838 

54  Stag  with  raised  leg.  (Proof  No.  40) 

55  Stag  walking.  (Proof  No.  16) 

16 


BY  ANTOINE  LOUIS  BARYE 

56  Wounded  stag 

57  Faun  scratching  itself.  Modern 

58  Faun  reclining.  (Proof  No.  8) 

59  “Kevel” 

60  Ethiopian  gazelle 

61  Wolf  walking 

62  Bull.  1841 

63  Prancing  bull.  1841 

64  Bull  overcome  by  bear.  1839 

65  Turkish  horse 

66  Half-blood  horse  with  raised  head. 

(Reduction) 

67  Half-blood  horse  with  lowered  head 

68  Ratel  robbing  nest 

69  Wolf  taken  in  trap 

70  Dachshund 

71  English  dachshund 

72  Two  dogs  after  pheasant.  (Proof 

No.  5) 


17 


BRONZES 


73  Two  dogs  running 

74  King  Charles  spaniel.  (Silver) 

Modern 

75  Andirons  decorated  with  two  dachs- 

hunds 

76  Seated  cat 

77  Seated  hare.  Modern 

78  Rabbit  with  ears  erect 

79  Startled  rabbit 

80  Rabbit  with  ears  down 

81  Crocodile 

82  Stork  on  back  of  tortoise 

83  Hercules  carrying  boar.  (Silver) 

Modern 

84  Roman  jester.  Modern 

85  Juno 

86  Chimera 

87  Greek  candelabra  surmounted  by 

stork 


18 


BY  ANTOINE  LOUIS  BARYE 

88  Pair  candlesticks  decorated  with  leaf- 

age 

89  Pair  Greek  candlesticks  with  antique 

medallions 

90  Pheasant.  Modern 

91  Wounded  pheasant.  Modern 

92  Eagle  and  serpent.  1824-5 

BAS-RELIEFS 

93  Eagle  and  serpent.  1824-5 

94  Running  elk 

95  Virginia  stag 

96  Brach  hound  pointing 

97  “Genette”  carrying  bird 

98  Leopard.  1831 

99  Panther.  1831 

100  Virginia  hart 

101  Eagle  and  chamois 

19 


PAINTINGS 


PAINTINGS 

102  Fontainebleau 

103  Wolf  chasing  a stork 

104  Stag  walking 

105  Standing  lion 

106  Rolling  tiger 

107  Lion  reclining 

108  Leopard  and  snail 

109  Tiger  reclining 

110  Drawings  of  animals 

111  Portrait  of  Barye.  Photograph 

112  Medallion  of  Barye  by  A.  Patey 


20 


